Lagos State government, on Friday, announced plans to raise N214.8 billion through bonds within five days to finance different infrastructure needs of the state.

This was disclosed during a bond issuance event tagged ‘Investment Forum and Engagement with Mr. Governor’ organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Finance and Debt Management Office (DMO), in Lagos.

In his address at the event, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who spoke passionately about bridging the state’s infrastructure gap, said the N214.8 billion is small, especially if inflation, exchange rate and the rising cost of projects as well as the infrastructure gaps in the state are looked at critically.

He revealed that the cost of projects have more than doubled when compared with what the state government usually expended on the same projects four to five years ago.

The total bond issuance, which is N214.8 billion are in two categories – a N200 billion, 10-year bonds targeted at 24 infrastructure projects across nine Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).

The MDAs include housing, health, environment, agriculture, transportation, and innovation, science and technology. The second bond is a N14.815 billion green bond.

The governor said the green bond is the first of its kind by a sub-national government in Nigeria, adding that the state government did that after several efforts to raise fund internationally did not materialise.

Sanwo-Olu said the green bond proceeds will be used for environmentally sustainable initiatives such as renewable energy, climate change adaptation, and sustainable water and wastewater management.

Also speaking at the event, the CEO of ChapelHill Denham, the lead issuing house, Bolaji Balogun, said they hope to close the deals within five days and make the proceeds from the bond issuance available to the state government within the next two weeks.

“Lagos is first among peoples, among the sub-nationals, not only in this country, but on this continent, that we feel confident pushing the envelope and asking the investing markets to work with us to raise N200 billion of capital,” Balogun stated.